The Kennedy Half-Century by Larry J. Sabato

Share via

If reverence for the Founding Fathers is the closest thing that the United States has to a civic religion, John F. Kennedy is its modern icon. His brutal end 50 years ago has dominated popular recollection of him. It has also spawned a culture of irrationalist conspiracy theories exemplified in the deranged and disturbing phenomenon of the 9/11 Truth campaigners. Larry J. Sabato’s study gives a balanced and judicious, if sometimes too indulgent, assessment of the murdered President’s achievements and legacy.

The wonder is that so slim a record of legislative accomplishment as JFK’s, combined with extreme flaws of personality,